Steve Munno, Farm Manager of Massaro Farm in Woodbridge, CT, recently traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with Congressional leaders to support small farm and sustainable agriculture federal programs. Currently, many of these programs face cuts and even complete elimination. Many small farms, including beginning and minority farmers depend on these programs, like the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), SARE and ATTRA (see http://ctnofa1982.blogspot.com/2010/11/are-you-involved-in-or-interested-in.html) to keep their farms running...including Steve who was awarded funding through EQIP. But Steve was not alone – more than 30 farmers, ranchers and conservations from across the country joined the cause, organized by the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition.
The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition is “an alliance of grassroots organizations that advocates for federal policy reform to advance the sustainability of agriculture, food systems, natural resources and rural communities. For over 20 years, this coalition has been fighting for sustainable food practices. Their accomplishments include initiatives and programs that deal with Promoting Conservation, Fostering Family Farm Agriculture, Building New Markets and Developing Sustainable Research, Education and Extension. They are a wealth of knowledge so be sure to check out their website at http://sustainableagriculture.net/
To read the full article on Steve’s trip, what he was able to accomplish, and to see a list of all of the activists,
We applaud Steve for his efforts. For more on Massaro Farm visit http://www.massarofarm.org/wp/ and http://www.massarofarmcsa.org/wp/
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